Two-day 'Think-20' meeting under G20 in Bhopal from Jan 16

Bhopal, Jan 15 (PTI) A 'Think-20' meeting under the G20 will begin in Bhopal on Monday during which experts and foreign guests will discuss various topics, including 'Global Governance with LiFE, Values, and Wellbeing', officials said.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday evening reviewed preparations for the two-day meeting, which will be attended by 94 representatives from different countries, besides intellectuals and officials from India, an official release said.
The main speaker at the inaugural session will be Tetsushi Sonobe, Dean and CEO of the Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo.
Other speakers during the inaugural session will be Indonesia's Deputy Minister for Political Affairs, Law, Defence and Security Slamet Soedarsono, Chief Coordinator for India's G20 Presidency Harsh Vardhan Shringla and NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson Suman Bery, the release said.
CM Chouhan will attend the inaugural function of the event to be held at Kushabhau Thackeray International Convention Centre in Bhopal.
The session will also be addressed by Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) Director General Sachin Chaturvedi and Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses Director General Sujan Chinoy, the release said.
On January 17, there will be two plenary sessions, a round table meeting and a valedictory session with the concluding speech of Governor Mangubhai Patel.
There will also be 10 parallel sessions on the first day on various topics including institutional framework, investing in children as an investment in future, financing resilient cities and societies, economic systems transformation and one health wellness and traditional medicine.
Talking to reporters on Sunday evening, Chief Coordinator for India's G20 Presidency Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that it is a very critical time both globally and in India.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been the greatest shock to the international system since the Second World War and no sooner had they recovered from it, there is the Ukraine Crisis which has resulted in fuel and food shortages and inflation has been going up worldwide, he said.
This is a time of great concern all over the world, he said.
"We are very well placed to provide solutions that the world wants to see the G-20 address as well as take bold, inclusive and result-oriented steps under our presidency," Shringla said.
Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) Director General Sachin Chaturvedi told reporters Think-20 or T-20 is an important part of G-20 engagement groups in which the world's research institutions discuss G-20-related issues.
He said 300 delegates, including 94 representatives from 44 countries (comprising G-20 and guest countries) will participate in the two-day meeting.
Hope, harmony, peace and stability are defining ideas that will frame India's G-20 presidency, he said.
Chaturvedi said efforts have been the importance of the ethics and value system in international relations, financial institutions, artificial intelligence and genetic engineering should be discussed in T-20.
The ethical factor in the context of issues like the genetic manipulation of two kids in 2018 in China will also be discussed, he said.
The priority of these discussions will be to solve global challenges, Chaturvedi said, adding a 'Bhopal Declaration' will be made at the end of the T-20 meet.
The guests from India and abroad will also visit the Tribal Museum in Bhopal. There will also be a cultural programme and dinner at the museum on the first day of the event.
On the second day, the guests will visit stupas at Sanchi near Bhopal, the release said.
India assumed the G20 Presidency for one year on December 1, 2022.
The G20, or Group of 20, is an intergovernmental forum of the world's major developed and developing economies.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)